Last year he played in 18 games with the Trenton Thunder before going down for the season with double hip surgery. The North Jersey native got off to a .221 start this spring before going on a 28-game stretch in which he hit .383.

On July 21 he was promoted to the Yankees’ Triple-A club, and in his second game hit a grand slam.

Nineteen games and a .143 batting average later he was back here, back in Double-A.

He was again playing third base when Sunday night’s Eastern League game against the Reading Fightin Phils began after a 49-minute rain delay. He had an RBI double in his second at-bat during Trenton’s 4-2 loss at Arm & Hammer Park.

The announced crowd was 5,538. The loss was their fourth straight.

Prior to the game Segedin was hitting .394 in 10 games since his return.

Down but not out.

“Coming back with an attitude is only going to hurt you,’’ Segedin said about the option of feeling sorry for himself. “That’s not the kind of player I am, and not the player I’ll ever be.’’

The 2010 draft pick out of Tulane University, Segedin can still be the player he wants to be. A major league player.

“Let’s face it,’’ manager Tony Franklin said. “When you go up and come back it’s a little bit of a blow to your ego. More than anything it probably ticks you off a little bit. And I think that’s the way to approach it.

“Get mad about it; show them they made a mistake. That’s on you. That’s what you can control, going out there and playing better. That doesn’t mean he’s not going to go back at some point. It could be next year, and when he gets that opportunity he needs to play better. That’s what it comes down to.’’

Overall at Trenton the batting average is now .285. He has 92 hits, eight home runs and an on base percentage (OBP) around .400.

Before going down last year he was hitting .338 after 71 at-bats.

The major difference, however, has been his fielding.

Unable to do a basic squat in the weight room prior to his surgery, Segedin is now making plays that he said, “I hadn’t even dreamed about making.

He doesn’t see the last-season demotion as a message of doom. Not at all.

“One of my main goals was to stay healthy. It’s been good to play a full season coming off the injury. Overall, it’s been a pretty good season. I didn’t do well enough to deserve to stay up there,’’ he admitted.

“You can’t let that affect your performance. I came down here to finish the season off on a high note. It was upsetting to get sent down; it was the first time I’ve ever been demoted. But that’s just another reason to work harder.’’

He hopes to get a chance during the offseason, preferring to play winter ball as opposed to working out completely on his own.

“Losing last year basically to injury, I feel like I need to continue to keep playing.’’

NOTES – Jaron Long took the loss, allowing nine hits in 6.1 innings...The Princeton University football team took over the picnic area, and quarterback Quinn Epperly and linebacker Mike Zeuli threw out the ceremonial first pitch...Love was in the air in the top of the third inning. Perkasie, Pa., resident Ross Levy proposed to Robbinsville’s Renata Zak a few rows behind the home plate netting. Apparently she said yes.